The subject matter described and/or illustrated herein relates to a carrying system adapted for use with breathing apparatus. Particularly, but not exclusively, the subject matter described and/or illustrated herein is concerned with harnesses for carrying one or more air cylinders for use in emergency situations by people such as fire-fighters and others who may be exposed to contaminated and hostile environments.
Often fire-fighters are required to work in areas where the air cannot be inhaled for example because the air includes harmful gases. In such contaminated environments fire-fighters use breathing apparatus that comprises an air cylinder, a mask and supply lines connecting the air cylinder to the mask for delivering a protected breathable supply of air. However, the air in the cylinder is usually pressurised and as a result the air cylinder is heavy and cumbersome for fire-fighters to carry. For this reason, carrying systems have been devised to assist fire-fighters and others in carrying breathing apparatus. In general, such carrying systems consist of a harness to which the air cylinder is attached which includes one or more shoulder straps and a belt strap which are worn around the body so that the harness and hence the air cylinder are strapped to the body leaving the fire-fighter's hands and arms free.
In GB 2302009 a conventional harness for use with breathing apparatus is described. The harness includes a backplate which is flexible into and out of the plane of the wearer's back and a pivotal connection between the backplate and the belt for permitting sideways movement. The pivotal connection is also adapted to freely move in a longitudinal slot in the backplate so that the length of the harness adjusts during use. However, little information is provided as to how air is fed from the air cylinders to the mask of the breathing apparatus.
A different harness is described in GB 2400014 which includes at least one flexible shoulder panel and a flexible mounting plate to which an air cylinder is attached. The shoulder panel is made of a compression moulded EVA foam which, whilst being flexible, is stiffened so that the shoulder panel retains its operational configuration even when not being worn.
In EP 1253967 an alternative carrying system is described in which a rigid backplate is divided in two to enable the longitudinal length of the carrying system to be adjusted to accommodate the different back lengths of different wearers. The air supply lines follow a path between the two halves of the backplate and therefore are not easily accessible.